One of the best ways to keep warm this winter and to make your home more energy efficient is to improve the insulation.

Two of the areas that benefit most from being insulated are the loft and exterior walls.

According to the Energy Saving Trust, a quarter of the heat in an uninsulated home is lost through the roof.

Laying 27cm of insulation in an uninsulated loft can save you up to £175 a year.

While you can get a pro to insulate your loft, it’s generally a straightforward DIY job and there are lots of different loft insulation materials to choose from. Rigid insulation boards are particularly useful if you want to board over the loft for storage.

And don’t forget to insulate any water pipes and tanks in the loft, as insulating the floor will make the loft itself colder because less heat will get through from the rooms below.

Insulating cavity walls is also a great way to save money, but this isn’t a job you can do yourself.

It’s a relatively quick and easy process, but the installer will need to be able to access all the walls.

The installer will make small holes in your home’s exterior walls, blow the insulation material through the holes into the cavity and then fill the holes.

However, the work is likely to cost several thousand pounds, rather than the few hundred, or less, it costs to insulate a loft or cavity walls.

When insulating your home don’t forget the risks of burst pipes - insulate them in the loft and anywhere else you can access them.